This blog has been a bit quiet of late: we realise. In part it’s because I’ve had (probably) swine flu and have been in bed since Monday.

It’s also because Alex and I have been more or less off-diary for a fortnight to take a long look at Tony Blair’s multiple interests since leaving office – with the help of half a dozen colleagues. Read more

During the Tory party conference I went to watch the Tories’ controversial new allies – Michal Kaminski and Robert Zile – at a gathering. Afterwards I wrote a fairly neutral piece. Why? Because I didn’t know enough about Polish or Latvian politics to start repeating Labour-generated smears about certain MEPs: not without any first-hand proof*.

Afterwards, a Labour MP wrote to me to complain that I’d been too soft on Kaminski, leader of Poland’s “Law and Justice” party (and chair of the new rightwing alliance in Brussels which includes the Tories). Read more

General election 2015

Countdown to May 7

About this blog

Blog guide

The fragmentation of UK politics makes the 2015 general election the most unpredictable in living memory. Follow Jim Pickard, Kiran Stacey and the rest of the FT team for unique insights as the campaign gets underway.

VIDEOS

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The authors

Jim Pickard is the FT's chief political correspondent, having joined the lobby team in January 2008. He has been at the FT since 1999 as a regional correspondent, assistant UK news editor and property correspondent.

Kiran Stacey is an FT political correspondent, having joined the lobby in 2011. He started at the FT as a graduate trainee in 2008, working on desks including UK companies and US equity markets before taking over the FT's Energy Source blog.